Year 12 ATAR Psychology - Operant Conditioning Flashcards

Flashcards reviewing key concepts of operant conditioning from Mount Lawley Senior High School Year 12 ATAR Psychology lecture notes.

Operant Conditioning

A form of learning whereby the consequences of behaviour determine the likelihood that it will be performed again in the future; involves VOLUNTARY responses.

Three Phase Model (ABC Model)

A model consisting of: Antecedent (stimulus before behavior), Behaviour (response to antecedent), and Consequence (result of the behavior).

Reinforcement

A consequence that causes a behaviour to occur more frequently.

Punishment

A consequence that causes a behaviour to occur less frequently.

Positive Reinforcement

The receiving of a pleasant stimulus to increase the occurrence of desired behavior.

Negative Reinforcement

The removal of an unpleasant stimulus to increase the desired behavior.

Positive Punishment

The addition of an unpleasant stimulus to reduce the occurrence of the undesired behavior.

Negative Punishment

The removal of a pleasant stimulus to reduce the occurrence of the undesired behavior.

Satiation/Deprivation

The effectiveness of a positive stimulus will be reduced if the individual has received enough of that stimulus. The opposite effect will occur if the individual becomes deprived of that stimulus.

Immediacy

An immediate consequence is more effective than a delayed one.

Contingency

Reinforcement should occur consistently after responses and not at other times to be most effective.

Law of Effect

An organism will tend to repeat behaviour that has desirable consequences, or that will enable it to avoid undesirable consequences.

Skinner Box

A box devised to study conditioning in animals comprised of a number of levers and a food chamber used to study the effects of reinforcement and punishment.

Continuous Reinforcement

Reinforcement that occurs after each response.

Fixed Ratio Schedule

Reinforcement that occurs after a fixed number of responses have been emitted since the previous reinforcement.

Variable Ratio Schedule

Reinforcement that occurs after a variable number of responses have been emitted since the previous reinforcement. This schedule typically yields a very high, persistent rate of response.

Fixed Interval Schedule

Reinforcement occurs following the first response after a fixed time has elapsed after the previous reinforcement.

Variable Interval Schedule

Reinforcement occurs following the first response after a variable time has elapsed from the previous reinforcement. This schedule typically yields a relatively steady rate of response that varies with the average time between reinforcements.

Token Economies

A behaviour modification technique that only uses positive reinforcement to increase the occurence of a desired behaviour with symbolic tokens that are exchanged for tangible rewards.

Pigeon Study (Skinner - Aim & Method)

To see if superstitious behavior could be learned with operant conditioning, even if the reward wasn't related to the behavior. Skinner used pigeons in this study.

Pigeons were put in cages and given food randomly. Skinner watched what they did.

Pigeon Study (Skinner - Key Findings)

Pigeons started doing 'superstitious' things, repeating actions they thought led to food, even though it was random. Approximately 75\% of the pigeons exhibited noticeable superstitious behaviors.

Skinner initially used 8 pigeons in his study.

Shows that behavior can be conditioned even if the action doesn't directly cause the reward.

Pigeon Study (Skinner - Limitations)

Interpreting the pigeon's actions can be subjective, and the results might not apply to more complex beings or situations.

Puzzle Box Study (Thorndike - Aim & Method)

To study how cats learn to escape puzzle boxes, understanding their intelligence and problem-solving. Thorndike used cats in this experiment.

Cats were put in puzzle boxes, and Thorndike timed how long it took them to escape for food.

Puzzle Box Study (Thorndike - Key Findings)

Cats learned to escape by trying different things, getting faster each time. Initially, cats took an average of 150 seconds to escape, which decreased to around 60 seconds after multiple trials.

Thorndike used a total of 13 cats in his puzzle box experiments.

This led to the Law of Effect, saying that actions with good results are more likely to be repeated.

Puzzle Box Study (Thorndike - Limitations)

The puzzle box is not a natural setting, so it might not show real-world learning.

The study focuses on actions, possibly missing the thinking involved in learning.